Posted
by
timothy
on Sunday January 16, 2011 @07:02PM
from the haven't-you-always-wanted-to-see-those-words? dept.

Kramer747 writes "to share a new tool I've developed for neuroscience that uses optogenetics to remotely control the neurons of a worm as it swims or crawls. Its called CoLBeRT, Controlling Locomotion and Behavior in Real Time. With the instrument I can induce the worm to stop, accelerate, lay eggs or experience the illusion of touch. All source code to run the instrument is GPLd and available. Science News and Scientific American both have stories. The project homepage is at colbert.physics.harvard.edu." I hope that name also constitutes a successful bid to get on the actual Colbert show!

Does this new technology on how to control the neuron of a bacteria can is also applicable to the new trending news for today on ATM keypads and public toilets both have bacteria, says British study.It’s well known that public facilities are breeding environments for germs. Toilets are as full of bacteria as expected, but ATM keypads are practically as bad. The research was, not astonishingly, financed by antibacterial makers [personalmoneystore.com]. This doesn't mean that others are worried about it, however. Just think of

I see very little practical use for controlling worms. Now, get me a vertebrate, a good-sized one... can you get it light enough to mount on a bird? That would be useful. Birds have a lot of lift in them.

I can see why C. Elegans was used. I know of that worm. It's been mapped: Every neuron teased apart, and it's connections to the others documented.

Squirm
1976, Horror
During a storm, the power lines are broken and touch the ground, calling up millions of earthworms and turning them into vicious man-eaters that are unleashed upon a small, unsuspecting American fishing village in Georgia.

I can control advanced primates with optical stimulation. I can make them forgo social interaction, practice sleep deprivation and prevent them from reproducing as their brains are redirected to sexually self stimulate instead.. I call the device a video monitor with a porn feed.

Maybe this will bring in a new era of competitive worm-games: you control your team (or single worm) with your system, and Stirman controls the other side with his. (You just need to put them in a microfluidic device and set up your system on one side and theirs on the other....)

So you never brush your teeth or wash yourself, since that kills bacteria?You never clean your bathroom or take antibiotics?You never swat at mosquitos or kill ants staging a home invasion?You never eat either? Or are you a scavenger? (Except even scavenging results in the small deaths of microscopic creatures.)

Valuing all life is an untenable position that simply cannot be put into practice. If you value life, an admirable tenet, you still have to decide which kinds of life to value. Just saying "I val

One of the big questions in science is how neurons control behavior. It's a tough thing to answer when you can't control the neurons. (E.g. "tell me what this software program works without using it or altering the source code.")

So this is a big help in figuring out how neurons control worm behavior. Since we don't know much about how neurons control the behavior of anything, this is a big step forward!

Sure. It would take awhile to get the choreography down. I believe the Stirman group made videos of a paralyzed worm that wiggles its head and tail, and we have also done the same, although I don't have any videos of that up.

We actually discussed this in lab and I think "All the single ladies" would have been a good song choice since the worms are also single (albeit hermaphrodites).

Ultimately we decided not to pursue this, even though it would have been a great visual. Unfortunately, scientists today oper

do you have a map of the neuron connections mapping which neuron does what and how ?I think it would be helpful to have a graphical map which shows the pathways for each function and how the light activates them.also is there any good mapping of what an individual worm neuron does ? how does it use chemical and electrical functions to execute commands.